Fact Check: Did Indonesia's Finance Minister Call for Death Penalty for Corruptors?

August 3, 2026 | 08:20 am

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - A video circulating on Instagram [archive], Facebook, and TikTok claims that Indonesian Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa is calling for the death penalty and asset confiscation for corruptors. The video shows Purbaya calling corruption a crime with major consequences, so perpetrators should not be given light sentences.

Here are the words from the video:

The death penalty must be implemented. This is my suggestion to President Prabowo Subianto. Corruptors steal billions, yet receive light sentences. That's unfair. I personally believe that extraordinary crimes require extraordinary punishments. I even agree that the death penalty should be implemented. At the very least, all assets should be confiscated. There should be no stories of people leaving prison still rich. I'm sure the people support this.

However, did Purbaya really make that statement?

FACT CHECK

Tempo verified this content by tracing the video source through a reverse image search, detecting elements of fake news, and comparing it to credible information. The results showed that the full video does not show Purbaya discussing the death penalty. The content is a result of fake news engineering from old footage.

Video Verification

The original video was uploaded to the Kompas TV YouTube channel on September 19, 2025. The 33-minute, 15-second recording depicts a press conference at the Ministry of Finance office in Jakarta. Other media outlets also contain similar information.

At the time, Purbaya was answering reporters' questions about strengthening the economy, tax amnesty, handling illegal cigarettes, and filtering smuggled goods at customs. The press conference took place in the second week of his term as Minister of Finance.

Video Has Been Modified

The video's creator altered the sound and flipped the image horizontally. This flipping technique altered the microphone position, the lines of the wall decoration, and the direction of Purbaya's face. The voice in the modified video differed from Purbaya's original voice because his intonation was too flat.

Furthermore, the area of Purbaya's forehead appears to fluctuate with asynchronous skin movements. The cheeks and jawline appear blurry, while the corners of the mouth shift unnaturally. Analysis using The Hive showed a voice manipulation level of 86.8 percent. The voice imitation was detected between the 10th and 20th seconds.

Expert Analysis

Tempo asked the Deepfakes Analysis Unit (DAU) of the Trusted Information Alliance (TIA) India to examine the content. The organization used several impersonation detection applications.

The Hiya Audio Intelligence filtering results indicated that the voice in the content was machine-generated. Aurigin AI also detected the voice from seconds 9 to 19 as being machine-generated. Meanwhile, the Hive Deepfake Classifier flagged several frames as deepfakes.

DAU analysts stated that the background music inserted into the video was intentionally used to hinder the detection tool's accuracy. However, manual analysis still confirmed the conclusion that the content was produced by a machine-generated model.

Analysts found inconsistent eyeglass frame shapes, with the frames even appearing to blend into the skin. The lip area was also sometimes blurry and sometimes clear, accompanied by white patches on the lips and upper teeth, and white squares resembling dentures of inconsistent height.

"This indicates extensive manipulation of the mouth area by irresponsible parties," said DAU analysts in a written statement on Wednesday, July 29, 2026.

CONCLUSION

Tempo's verification concluded that the claim that the video shows Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa pushing for the death penalty for corruptors is false.

TEMPO FACT CHECK TEAM

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